Spikeopath
Crash Dive is directed by Archie Mayo and written by Jo Swerling and W.R. Burnett. It stars Tyrone Power, Dana Andrews, Anne Baxter, James Gleason, May Witty and Harry Morgan. A Technicolor production out of 20th Century Fox, music is by David Buttolph and cinematography by Leon Shamroy.It's flag waving time, 1943 style as Power and Andrews vie for the love of Baxter whilst conducting a submarine offencive against the Nazis. The love triangle feels twee but Mayo manages to keep it in check and not let it bog this particular sub movie down. When the pic is out on the water it's grand entertainment, nicely filmed and featuring Oscar winning effects work. Momentum is gradually built until the finale comes and delivers an action packed bonanza. Hooray! 7/10
sankey48
I really enjoyed this movie and I like what other reviewers have said. particularly the reports on the history of US Navy shipping at the time and also some of the goofs. I did enjoy the acting and interesting plot. I felt like the scenes of the Depth charges being dripped was a bit amateurish. the splashes of the cans told you it was small cans in a tub or something. Good movie overall great action at the German occupied Island shipping base. The movie must have been good as it kept my attention throughout, that always says something. I have a feeling I bought this movie from Amazon when I saw it advertised in the same area of another War/ Submarine Movie I was looking for. Glad I bought it.
ianlouisiana
A rather lumpen Miss Anne Baxter is the love interest for messrs Power and Andrews,one a Nob Hill type,the other a working slob who needs a pay rise before he can propose to her.Power is dashing,debonair and mega - rich,has a real good dentist,and has his uniforms tailored. He ends up with the girl - not perhaps the best message to send out to your boys fighting on all fronts,the vast majority of whom lacked these advantages,but,hey,it's only a movie. And,perhaps surprisingly,rather a good one at that.James Gleason is excellent as the veteran Chief with a concealed health problem that stops him going for promotion and a strong urge to redeem himself for faking sickness during WW1 to avoid going into action. When the crew go ashore to destroy a German base he redeems himself by making the ultimate sacrifice. His best mate is black - a daring move for 1943,and played absolutely straight,no eye - rolling Stepin Fetchit stuff here. The special effects are excellent,the raid ashore is particularly well - handled.It is a propaganda movie of course,but one with rather more merit than most. There is a deft mixture of comedy and tension,never an easy trick to pull off,and one doesn't get the impression that it was a quota picture the studio hacked out to help the War Effort,more that considerable time and care was put into "Crash Dive" by people who were proud of their craft. First - Class entertainment that more than fulfills its purpose.
MartinHafer
This was a very enjoyable WWII film, though before I discuss why I liked the movie, I should point out that the film does have one BIG cliché. When Tyrone Power meets a woman (Anne Baxter--here with dark brown hair) and they immediately hate each other, lovers of classic Hollywood films know that this can only mean one thing---they are destined to fall in love by the end of the film!! Aside from this predictable aspect of the film, I really did like the movie.The first thing I noticed about the film was the gorgeous color film. For 1943, it was terrific--with the most vibrant blues I've ever seen--much like the look of the great film, THE CAINE MUTINY. Twentieth-Century Fox really pulled out the stops to make this film look nice.As far as the plot goes, it's a pretty exciting and standard submarine film. Now that I write this, I realize that they sure made a lot of great sub films over the years--with hardly a stinker among them. This film maintains the excellent tradition of such lovely films as RUN SILENT RUN DEEP, THE ENEMY BELOW and DESINTATION TOKYO--all lovely films that are both gripping and entertaining.The film has more plot than just subs and Anne Baxter. It seems that Tyrone Power was very happy and successful aboard PT boats. When he was transferred to sub duty, he wasn't particularly excited, as he thought that patrol boats were the greatest thing since sliced bread. However, over time, he makes good and grows to love the submarine.CRASH DIVE has some excellent action scenes--particularly the attack on a secret base near the end. The acting good, script very good for a wartime propaganda flick and I particularly liked the sympathetic portrayal of the Black sailor--something pretty rare in a film of the era. Overall, a good and enjoyable film.
AD
